Me and the Secretary
There had been more than a week of really cold days this
past November, below zero days up here.
I’m referring to the Marias Pass area, back to Bear Creek and east to
the reservation. The country had finally become wintered up. We’d had some snow followed by some low
temperatures. I still had horses at our
place however, and so when I was asked by a friend to lead a ride into some of
the best country I know, special country I’ve ridden in for pushing forty
years, I nodded a go.
The country I’m speaking of is the Badger- Two Medicine,
east of the continental divide and south to Birch Creek, directly adjacent to
Glacier National Park. Many of you know
the area, some very well. At the least,
you’ve read about it, in this publication and many others. The Badger- Two Medicine hasn’t been without
controversy over the course of the past half century and that profile has
heated up significantly over the past decade.
Oil and gas exploration, motorized vehicle use, grazing of livestock,
national monument status, and Native American treaty rights have all had their
time in the public’s environmental bullseye.
Amazingly enough however, oil and gas leases have been, slowly but
surely, and not without hard public advocacy, eliminated, one after
another. Motorized use in the Badger
became prohibited following very contentious debate by both sides of the
issue. You won’t see a snow machine or a
four wheeler anymore. Monument status in
the Badger has been raised to discussion level in Washington D.C, and the Blackfeet
Tribe has begun to exert its influence in decision making forums relative to
the area.
This past September, a judge reinstated the oil and gas
lease of Solonex, LLC in the Badger- Two Medicine, and after twenty one years,
Big Oil was back in play. Game on. From my perspective, however, Solonex only
added more fuel to the fire. Of
additional concern to me over this past year has been the specter of monument
designation, at first blush an environmental boon to the area but in my
opinion, a move that would put the Badger in the public consciousness and on
display to the ever burgeoning increase in tourism and visitation. More drama.
Well alright, so what about the ride we were about to
do? Me, my good friend, and the
Secretary of Interior, Ryan Zinke were up.
The three of us on a private ride.
No security, no press, nobody.
Ryan wanted to see the country in question and I was good with
that. They rode mules and I rode a
horse. We’re saddled up and off we go,
onward and upward into the heart of some of the dearest, most sacred and
precious country I know. It was a
beautiful day, cold and crisp, the snow was as white as a polar bear’s ass, and
the sun was out. I didn’t know what to
make of Ryan. He’s big and tall, a
decent looking fellow. I may have been
expecting what we’ve all read, a grandstander, shoots from the hip, a big
mouth. Nothing could have been further
from the truth.
I’ve read what you’ve read.
I’ve heard as well what you have, on the news and on the stump. I agree, it’s not very flattering.
As we rode ahead into the high country, the
day absolutely spectacular, that sun keeping us warm, and the sky as blue as
Butch Cassidy’s eyes, I was with a man who was kind, courteous, and generous. Hell, we shared his Maker’s Mark whiskey over
small talk while letting the country speak for itself. The Secretary was curious, I could see. He asked questions and listened respectfully
as I responded, and added my thoughts on about everything he could see. And we could see from the Sweetgrass Hills to
Divide Mountain and down towards Heart Butte.
I want to tell you that my mission that day was to focus on
one thing. And that was the Badger-Two
Medicine, nothing more. I didn’t want to
go anywhere else, not to the ANWR, not to the Yellowstone, not to the Bears
Ears. I stayed with the country I
know. And I repeat again, for the most
part, I let the country do the talking.
Ryan listened. I could see it and
I know it to be true. He loved our ride,
he loved the country we’d ridden him through.
And when it was all said and done he looked me in the eye and told me he
wouldn’t tear up the heart and soul of the country he’d just ridden
through. He could give Solonex drilling
rights somewhere else. I believed him.
He’s gone now. Done
at the Department of Interior. He’s been
a disappointment to many. I just read a
scathing article about his reign in this publication this morning. I don’t know what to say at this point but
let me get the following off my chest.
Ryan Zinke is a Montana boy. He
showed me a real good side on a very special day in the backcountry. On that day, he put Montana first. And consequently, he put you first.
